PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Gov. Tom Corbett said foreign business leaders are increasingly eyeing Pennsylvania as a place to invest because of its access to Marcellus Shale natural gas.

Corbett was in Philadelphia on Friday to deliver remarks to an industry-supported energy summit at the Franklin Institute. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports he told attendees that Pennsylvania’s shale-gas boom was a subject frequently raised on his trade missions to South America and Europe.

Corbett credits exploration of the nation’s largest known reservoir of natural gas with boosting hiring, rescuing troubled Philadelphia-area refineries and lowering home heating and electric bills.

Protesters picketed the event, but were turned away at the door.

Corbett referred briefly to them, saying complaints that he doesn’t believe in protecting the environment and public health couldn’t be further from the truth.